Chen Shan fell into silence.
A divine stroke, beyond human reach!
It was hard to imagine any move worthy of such a description, yet right now, he found himself unable to refute it.
This fifth-line shoulder hit—
The more he looked at it, the more imposing it seed!
If they hadn't spent hours analyzing it, they wouldn’t even have reached this conclusion.
"In Go, center play is the most complex and volatile."
Chen Shan finally spoke.
"Even though our review has proven that this fifth-line shoulder hit works—no, it’s beyond effective, it’s an unimaginable high-level move—it still cos at a heavy price. It sacrifices corner and side stability to chase influence in the center."
"This kind of all-in, full-board strategy, where a single mistake ans total collapse... It’s simply not sothing a human should be capable of playing."
Chen Shan furrowed his brows.
"The risk is astronomical—far beyond anything conventional strategy would allow!"
"True," Zhang Dongchen admitted, shaking his head.
"But in this ga, Black made it work."
"No matter how we look at it, in this match, every move from Black was beyond human comprehension. He ignored conventional plays, moved with supernatural foresight—like a lone crane soaring through the skies, untethered and untraceable."
"And in this one ga... he did it."
Chen Shan remained silent.
Then, after a long mont, he nodded.
"...Regardless of everything else, I believe you now. Before long, he will be sitting across from us."
"But—"
His tone suddenly shifted.
He turned to Zhang Dongchen and asked,
"Xiao Zhang, don’t you think you’re overhyping the newcor a little? Are you selling yourself short?"
Zhang Dongchen blinked, then let out a soft chuckle.
"No, I wouldn’t say that."
"After all, whether he can actually make it to the National Master Main Event is still up in the air. Players like Lai Yu, 9-dan, aren’t going to just let him waltz through."
Chen Shan’s eyes flashed with a sharp glint.
"If he truly fights his way through and reaches the main event—"
"Then let him co at us with everything he has!"
"I look forward to that day!"
The Next Day
The registration deadline for the Yingjiao Cup had officially closed.
This ant that over the next two months, the tournant would be in full swing, with the final champion erging in just sixty days.
With no ti to waste, after finishing his latest round in the National Master Preliminaries, Yu Shao only took two days off before heading back to the Go Academy.
Inside the playing room, Le Haoqiang sat at Table 12, looking visibly troubled.
"Morning, Le Ye!"
Dou Yiming strode over confidently, waving a fan with the words "Unrivaled" emblazoned across it.
Le Haoqiang only responded with a half-hearted, "Morning."
"He looks out of it. Sothing on his mind?"
Zhang Dongchen blinked, noticing his state.
"Nothing," Le Haoqiang said dismissively, brushing it off.
Dou Yiming could tell he didn’t want to talk, so he didn’t press further.
With a shrug, he twirled his fan, humd a tune, and turned to leave.
"Wait."
Le Haoqiang suddenly spoke up.
Dou Yiming paused mid-step, turning back with a puzzled expression.
"What’s up?"
"That ga you lost to Su Yiming—how exactly did you lose?"
Le Haoqiang asked, his tone serious.
At those words, Dou Yiming’s confident smile stiffened.
His streak of two consecutive wins had left him in high spirits, but now—
That good mood vanished instantly.
"Haha, didn’t I already tell you?"
He forced a laugh.
"I just made a big mistake—misread liberties, played a blunder. If not for that, he never would’ve won!"
"Really?"
Le Haoqiang stared at him intently.
Under his sharp gaze, Dou Yiming felt his confidence waver.
He quickly fanned himself and muttered, "Damn it, believe what you want."
Then, he turned and fled.
Le Haoqiang hadn’t believed his excuse from the start.
That’s why he had gone to personally watch Yu Shao’s match a few days ago.
And after seeing it with his own eyes—
He was even more convinced.
Because even if Su Yiming was stronger than Dou Yiming—
There was no way he could be a match for Yu Shao.
Just then, Yu Shao stepped into the playing room.
Le Haoqiang’s gaze imdiately darkened.
Yu Shao took a quick glance around before heading straight for Table 18 and taking his seat.
Le Haoqiang kept staring at him—
Only when Yu Shao had fully settled in did he finally look away.
"Each region only gets three slots for the Yingjiao Cup main event."
"Only fifteen players will advance to the Central Region for the single-elimination finals, where the champion will be decided."
Le Haoqiang’s gaze shifted to Table 5, where another young player sat.
He was a slender boy with short, tousled hair, his features clean and sharp.
He sat quietly at Table 5, waiting for his opponent.
Wang Xiuyuan might be a formidable opponent, but Le Haoqiang was confident he held the upper hand.
"As long as I play steadily, I can win!"
His gaze shifted to Dou Yiming, who had already taken his seat at Table 32.
"Dou Yiming? Not even worth considering... Sure, he’s already a 6-dan, but that’s just because he turned pro two years before . He’s not really my match."
Then, he thought of another na.
"Yang Liqiang isn’t here today… He’s good at middle-ga fights, but his endga has serious weaknesses. If I stay patient and play solidly, my chances of winning are high."
Finally, Le Haoqiang’s eyes fell on Yu Shao’s back.
The image of Yu Shao’s recent match against Zheng Qin flashed through his mind.
"If he can play like that every ga..."
Le Haoqiang clenched his fists.
"He’s strong—but there’s no way I’ll lose to him!"
Even though he was only a 5-dan, he had already defeated several 9-dan pros.
He had even beaten Zhu Xinyuan, one of the stronger 9-dans.
Sure, it didn’t an he had reached 9-dan level consistently, but it proved that on a good day, he could threaten even the best players.
"No matter how well he plays, I can’t lose!"
"The championship doesn’t matter right now—getting into the main event is the priority!"
"I have to be one of the ten players who qualify for the final selection!"
Match Day
As the tournant start ti approached, players gradually filled the playing room.
When Le Haoqiang’s opponent sat down across from him, he took a deep breath and cleared his mind.
Soon, the referees entered the room.
After a short wait, one of them announced the rules.
"Ti control: 2 hours per player, with a 1-minute byo-yomi period."
"Komi: 7.5 points for White."
"Players, please proceed with the turn-order selection."
The room filled with the soft rustling of Go stones being drawn from bowls.
Then, the players exchanged formal bows.
The matches began.
Thirty Minutes Later – Table 18
"Is he really as strong as they say?"
The bespectacled young man sitting across from Yu Shao adjusted his glasses.
He studied the board, then glanced up at Yu Shao with a hint of doubt.
"I’ve got a good position so far. He even beat Zheng Qin, so I thought I’d have no chance."
"But maybe... maybe I actually have a shot at winning?"
"No! Getting overconfident before the battle is a fatal mistake!"
Shaking his head, he refocused on the board.
He reached into his Go bowl, carefully selecting a stone.
"Since I have an advantage, I’ll keep it simple and solid!"
"I’m in good form today—maybe I’ll be the first to defeat him!"
Snap!
Row 5, Column 14—Cut!
Yu Shao silently studied the board.
After a brief mont, he reached for a stone and played instantly.
Snap!
Row 7, Column 14—Clamp!
Black and White continued to exchange moves, the rhythm of the ga growing faster and faster.
At first, the young man across from Yu Shao played confidently.
But as the ga went on—
His face flushed red.
His expressions shifted between shock and disbelief.
His moves slowed down.
And slowed down even more.
Finally—
Two and a half hours later...
"I... I lost..."
He stared blankly at the board.
His voice was hollow.
Yu Shao nodded slightly.
"Thank you for the match."
"...Thank you for the match."
The young man swallowed dryly as he returned the bow.
After tidying up the board and reporting his match result to the referee, Yu Shao quietly left the playing room.
The young man remained seated for a long ti.
Eventually, he slowly stood up and walked toward the cafeteria.
Cafeteria
He picked up a tray of food and sat down, mindlessly eating.
Nearby, a few professional players were chatting.
"You passed the bar exam?"
"Damn, you’re a lawyer and a pro Go player? Give the rest of us a chance to succeed!"
"He already bought an apartnt in downtown Jiangling with his tournant winnings..."
The lively conversations around him felt distant.
He heard everything—yet nothing registered.
He just sat there, chanically eating his al, his mind replaying the match over and over.
Every move Yu Shao had played.
Every mont he had struggled to keep up.
Every crushing realization that there was nothing he could do.
"Pan Kai?"
A young man carrying a food tray sat down across from him.
"I heard you played against Yu Shao today. Lost?"
Pan Kai finally snapped back to reality.
He looked at the young man and nodded.
"Losing isn’t a big deal."
The young man patted him on the shoulder.
"You’re only seventeen, already a 4-dan pro—you have a bright future ahead. You’ll get stronger, and one day you’ll beat him."
He smiled.
"So, how strong is he, exactly?"
"I’ve heard he’s incredible, but since he’s still in the preliminaries, no match records have leaked yet."
"So tell —how strong is he?"
Pan Kai froze.
His fingers tightened around his chopsticks.
Then, he set them down.
After a long silence, he finally spoke.
"I will never be able to beat him."
The young man stared in shock.
"...What?"
"No matter how much I train, no matter how much effort I put in—"
"No matter how hard I think, no matter how deeply I analyze—"
"I will never defeat him."
Pan Kai closed his eyes.
"Not with the talent I was born with. It’s simply impossible."
He lifted his head, looked the young man in the eye, and said:
"When I finished that ga, for the first ti in my life..."
"I wished I was only a 1-dan player."
"...Why?"
The young man frowned.
"Because then, with my ranking, I probably wouldn’t have ever faced him in a tournant."
Pan Kai’s voice was barely a whisper.
"Because then, I wouldn’t know why I lost."
"Because then, I could still believe that soday, I might win."
The young man opened his mouth as if to speak—
But in the end, he said nothing.
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